Shafaq News- Kirkuk
A large fire destroyed nearly 50 dunams (5 hectares)of wheat farmland in southern Kirkuk province, north-central Iraq, on Wednesdayduring the harvest season, causing material losses for local farmers withoutany reported casualties, a Civil Defense source told Shafaq News.
The blaze erupted around noon in fields belonging tofarmers in the village of Kalisa in Daquq district. High temperatures andstrong winds accelerated its spread before civil defense teams managed, afterseveral hours, to contain the flames and prevent them from reaching nearbyorchards and farmland.
Authorities have opened an investigation into thecause of the fire, with preliminary findings yet to determine whether itresulted from an electrical short circuit or human activity.
The incident comes as Kirkuk expects wheat productionto reach around 600,000 tons this season, reinforcing the province’s positionas one of Iraq’s main grain-producing areas. Kirkuk Agriculture Directoratehead Zuhair Ali Hussein told our agency in late April 2026 that average yieldshad reached around 1,250 kilograms per dunam, citing improved farming methods,technical support, and relatively favorable weather conditions.
Farmland fires frequently break out across southernKirkuk during harvest season and often cause major crop losses as temperaturesrise. In May 2025, firefighters extinguished another major blaze in Kirkukfarmland and saved more than 100,000 square meters of wheat nearing harvest,with civil defense officials attributing the fire at the time to an electricalshort circuit and urging farmers to follow safety measures during harvestingoperations.
(1 hectare = 10 dunams)
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